


Fate is known as reality

by followbutterfly



Category: Tenet (2020)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-27
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:08:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26143093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/followbutterfly/pseuds/followbutterfly
Summary: It’s what his life: life and death with nothing else in between. It’s all about professionalism. He’s assigned a task, does it, gets a bit rest, wakes up and does it again. Working is as easy as breathing, until he meets a stranger's familiar face.
Relationships: Neil/The Protagonist (Tenet)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 69





	Fate is known as reality

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [Fate is known as reality](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29001339) by [FatimaAlegra](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FatimaAlegra/pseuds/FatimaAlegra), [WTF Nolan Brothers 2021 (NolanBrothers)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NolanBrothers/pseuds/WTF%20Nolan%20Brothers%202021)



He doesn’t have a name, not because he’s born with none but he chooses to abandon it for so long. Everyone acknowledges him by nodding, or they might not have a chance, since his face is the last image they have seen.

It’s what his life: life and death with nothing else in between. It’s all about professionalism. He’s assigned a task, does it, gets a bit rest, wakes up and does it again. Working is as easy as breathing. 

When he’s firstly introduced to tenet and time inversion, his worldview has been turned upside down, as he’s been told that he can’t shake the habit of seeing the time in linear. But he knows damn well what causes that, he is the epitome of the linearity: thriving to do the job, excelling at completing the mission, striding towards the goal, no questions asked. Everything’s going forward, but also moving in the circle, in the same loop. 

He always remains in the dark: friendly when needed, brutal if necessary. He has no friends to tease his manners or to jibe at his usual anti-social habits. He has no one to tell how emotionally detached he is, as a person. He doesn’t consider himself having no choices since he’s born not to have one.

Not until he meets someone who does. 

The mission at the opera was completely disarray. His team had been betrayed since the beginning. As the leader he’s prepared to sacrifice his life. He had succeeded in taking down all the terrorists, but he came back to rescue all the spectators from the bomb, and at that moment of defusing the ticking clock, a figure rushed in and took the bomb, saving his life in a flash light. 

He didn’t see his face under the mask. That man came out of nowhere and fled from the scene in no time. The only thing he remembers is a ridiculous red string attached with his bag, looking like a totem, or a good luck charm.

He snorts at the image flashed in his mind. Someone who believes in the red string: fate, luck, some superstitions bullshit, has saved his life. 

The image becomes a blur, fading away from his flowing routine. He catches the ride of the new mission called Tenet, and he isn’t known to be the man who dwells on the past. He meets new colleague, some liaisons, a couple enemies, has been called ‘new face’ by a notorious arms dealer and gets to work with a new partner.

He doesn’t bother to introduce himself to a younger man, and refuses to show any confusions when he knows he doesn’t drink during the mission. The stranger with a familiar feeling, close to something called warm and friendly.

He stops himself to ask further about the man’s – Neil’s lucky guess and brushes it off as quickly as he can. He continues the mission, working with Neil, pretending to get closed to a woman, nearly gains a trust with a Russian Oligarch. There’s a bigger problem at hand, the world to save. There’s no such time to ask questions or indulge the curiosity.

In the temporal pincer movements, he requires to be the ‘first wave’ because all he has is his life to give. He has no fear of death, as he’s abandoned his life for a long time. No time to dwell in the past, and give hope to the future when he’s only had his life and the very present day to work on. 

They are in the room underneath the surface at least twenties feet. There’s no time to call for the backup. Ives is injured and he’s shouting at a Sator’s man and screaming at Sator in the phone, willing to give his life as the bargain during the end of the world. 

It all happens so fast. The bullet’s shot straight in front of him, then a body comes back to life and sprints into the action. It moves to the gate and unlocks the tunnel. His ears are still ringing by the gunfire, his vision’s whirring and trying to catch up with his mind.

And that moment the vision projects an image, the recent memory, still vivid and not lost by the flow, occurs to be jarring in his mind.

They save the world, almost get killed, just like another day of the mission, except this time he relaxes. He looks at Neil and begins to say a thank you. They would part ways as good colleagues even.

Neil turns back, and something catches his eyes. He almost chokes and forgets how to yell. When he calls Neil’s name, he walks out for quite distance. 

Neil faces him, saying he already knows what it is about. It’s just the beginning for you, and this should have been the last moment of our friendship.

He doesn’t know what to say but lets the tears run down his face. Neil simply smiles. We’ve known each other for many years. This time his smile is not oddly familiar, but rather relieved, as though he hasn’t had to pretend to not know him anymore. 

Neil breaks his unchangeable habit, and without a doubt breaks his walls, shatters them into pieces. Not only knowing his working habit, but Neil also has the maps of a man who chooses to abandon his name in his mind. 

Fate, as he chooses not to believe, turns out to be the reality Neil’s believed in. The man does the same as him, thriving for the job, succeeding in the mission, moving towards the goal.

But he never knows Neil’s mission is him. 


End file.
